Average S. Fla. family will see additional $11 a week, under Obama plan

Donna Gehrke-WhiteSun Sentinel

The average South Florida family will see $11 more a week in paychecks if President Barack Obama's jobs bill passes.

The average family in Broward and Palm Beach counties are already enjoying a $20 a week cut in their payroll taxes after Congress approved for this current year the president's plan to stimulate the economy.

Obama proposed more tax cuts Wednesday night in an address to Congress as a way to further encourage spending to avoid a recession.

Obama is asking Congress to put more money into pockets by further cutting payroll taxes -- or what is paid into the Social Security system. Usually, workers pay 6.2 percent in tax and their employers match that.

But Congress approved a plan to cut 2 percent of what employees pay. For the typical South Florida family who earns about $52,000 a year in median income, that translates into a $1,040 cut this year.

But the special break is scheduled to end Dec. 31 and Obama wants to further reduce Social Security taxes another 1.1 percent for 2012.

For the average South Florida family that would mean an extra $572 a year.

Many South Florida employees would also see cuts in what they pay in Social Security taxes as long as their payroll is less than $5 million a year.

Obama's plan would further waive all payroll taxes on increased spending on salaries either for new hires or salary increases up to the first $50 million in increased wages.

The plan now goes to Congress.

At least one local Republican Congressional leader has supported the reduction in payroll taxes.

U.S. Rep. Ileana Ros-Lehtinen of Miami-Dade told the media she favored even more as long as an equal amount of waste was found to eliminate in the federal budget.